Photo credit: Dan Hall

Our Mother’s Boy weekend of events is just over 2 weeks away! As we approach the event, we have prepared a guide for you to make the most out of our 3-day launch celebration.

Firstly, a bit about award winning and Sunday Times bestselling author, Patrick Gale:

Patrick was born on the Isle of Wight but has lived in Cornwall since 1987. He currently lives on a farm near Land’s End with his husband Aidan, where they raise beef cattle and grow barley. In addition to his work with us at The Charles Causley Trust in Launceston, he is also the artistic director of the North Cornwall Book Festival, patron of Penzance LitFest and a director of Endelienta. Mother’s Boy is one of Patrick’s many literary creations that embodies his affection for Cornwall. It is also his 21st book publication.

What is Mother’s Boy about?

Mother’s Boy is based around the known facts of the boyhood and youth of Charles Causley and the life of his mother, Laura. Laura is an impoverished Cornish girl who meets her husband when they are both in service in Teignmouth in 1916. They have a baby, Charles, but Laura’s husband returns home from the trenches a damaged man, already ill with the tuberculosis that will soon leave her a widow. In a small, class-obsessed town she raises her boy alone, working as a laundress, and gradually becomes aware that he is some kind of genius. Charles is an intensely private young man, who signs up for the navy with the new rank of coder. His escape from the tight, gossipy confines of Launceston to the colour and violence of war sees him blossom as he experiences not only the possibility of death, but the constant danger of a love that is as clandestine as his work. Mother’s Boy is a story of a man who is among, yet apart from his fellows, in thrall to, yet at a distance from his own mother; a man being shaped for a long, remarkable and revered life spent hiding in plain sight. But it is equally the story of the dauntless mother who will continue to shield him long after the dangers of war are past.

How to make the most out of your visit to Launceston:

• For Causley enthusiasts: Visit the cemetery by St Thomas Church where Charles Causley and his mother, Laura, are buried. Charles and Laura are the central characters in Patrick Gale’s Mother’s Boy. 
• Explore the heart of Launceston: Take a visit to the town centre and explore the local shops.
• For lovers of heritage: Visit nearby National Trust sites Cotehele House and Lanhydrock House and estate.

Important things to remember:

• Make sure you have either a printed copy or your email ticket confirmation to hand when arriving at our events. We will need to see this even if the event you are attending is free.
• Make sure you read our Covid guidance information prior to attending our events.
• Please ensure you have a face mask with you in case it is required at the venue you are attending.
• If you do not feel well or have come into contact with someone who has tested positive for Covid-19, please do not attend our events.

To secure your tickets to our events, head to our event page.

You can find out more about Patrick and his work via his website.